Watch Pepper the Robot Learn to Play the Ball-and-Cup Game

Pepper the robot has been in the news in the past for a few remarkable achievements, such as guessing the mood of humans, getting its own fashion line, and even being assaulted by a drunk man in a Japanese cell phone store. Now the robot gets to take part in yet another grand human tradition: the ball-and-cup game.

Pepper's learning abilities are put to the test as it's handed a ball-and-cup and guided to swing it around in attempt of mastering the children's game. It takes over 100 times before the bot actually gets it right, but after it does, Pepper never misses again.

Pepper is sold by the Japanese telecom company SoftBank, though it's designers are from the French robotics firm Aldebaran. It originally went on sale last summer, and achieved immense popularity. It's likely that robots designed for human interaction will become more commonplace as their popularity rises in the States, though they're apparently already commonplace in Japan. In fact, there's already an Americanized version of Pepper being prepared for the market, though a lot of changes were made to get the robot to act more sarcastic, as Westerners who've met the robot seem to think that Japanese Pepper is a bit too polite.

There will no doubt be a huge market for these types of robots eventually. They seem harmless and cute enough, even if they are a giant step forward towards the singularity. Just don't challenge them to a game of ball-and-cup. That is, unless you're OK with getting schooled by a robot.